Chrysler recalls 919,545 Jeeps

The recall issued by Jeep parent company Chrysler is due to a defect in the airbag control modules.

The recall issued by Jeep parent company Chrysler is due to a defect in the airbag control modules that could cause the front or side curtain airbags to deploy inadvertently.

The vehicles carrying the defective module are the Jeep Liberty (sold here as the Cherokee) and Grand Cherokee SUVs built from 2002 to 2004. The 919,545 Jeeps recalled include 744,822 in the United States; 49,430 in Canada; 21,828 in Mexico, and 103,465 around the rest of the world.

More than 11,000 of those two models were sold in Australia during the period covered by the recall, but Chrysler Australia has not yet confirmed the exact number affected here.

The recall was sparked by the results of an investigation started late last year after reports of airbags deploying inadvertently in the US, with the 215 cases probed including 81 that resulted in injuries.

"A design change to a supplied component was linked to a small number of inadvertent air bag deployments, and in keeping with the best interests of our customers, we initiated a recall campaign," David Dillon, Chrysler's global head of product investigations and campaigns, said in a statement. The defect will be fixed with the installation of a supplementary jumper harness to the airbag control module, Chrysler said.